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NTPD(8) 		     System Manager's Manual			 NTPD(8)

NAME
     ntpd -- Network Time Protocol (NTP) daemon

SYNOPSIS
     ntpd [-dnv] [-f file]

DESCRIPTION
     The  ntpd	daemon	synchronizes  the  local clock to one or more remote NTP
     servers or local timedelta sensors.  ntpd can also act as an NTP server it-
     self, redistributing the local time.  It implements the Simple Network Time
     Protocol version 4, as described in RFC 5905, and the Network Time Protocol
     version 3, as described in RFC 1305.  Time can also  be  fetched  from  TLS
     HTTPS servers to reduce the impact of unauthenticated NTP man-in-the-middle
     attacks.

     The options are as follows:

     -d 	 Do  not  daemonize.  If this option is specified, ntpd will run
		 in the foreground and log to stderr.

     -f file	 Use file as the configuration	file,  instead	of  the  default
		 /etc/ntpd.conf.

     -n 	 Configtest  mode.  Only check the configuration file for valid-
		 ity.

     -v 	 This option allows ntpd to send DEBUG priority messages to sys-
		 log.

     ntpd uses the adjtime(2) system call to correct the local system time with-
     out causing time jumps.  Adjustments of 32ms and greater are  logged  using
     syslog(3).  The threshold value is chosen to avoid having local clock drift
     thrash the log files.  Should ntpd be started with the -d or -v option, all
     calls to adjtime(2) will be logged.

     At  boot,	ntpd will stay for a maximum of 15 seconds in the foreground and
     make efforts to verify and correct the time if constraints  are  configured
     and  satisfied  or if trusted servers or sensors return results, and if the
     clock is not being moved backwards.

     After the local clock is synchronized, ntpd adjusts the clock frequency us-
     ing the adjfreq(2) system call to compensate for systematic drift.

     ntpd is started at boot time by default  via  ntpd_flags  in  /etc/rc.conf.
     See  rc(8)  and rc.conf(8) for more information on the boot process and en-
     abling daemons.

     When ntpd starts up, it reads settings from its configuration  file,  typi-
     cally  ntpd.conf(5),  and	its initial clock drift from /var/db/ntpd.drift.
     Clock drift is periodically written to the drift file thereafter.

FILES
     /etc/ntpd.conf	    Default configuration file.
     /var/db/ntpd.drift     Drift file.
     /var/run/ntpd.sock     Socket file for communication with ntpctl(8).

SEE ALSO
     date(1),	adjfreq(2),   adjtime(2),   ntpd.conf(5),   ntpctl(8),	  rc(8),
     rc.conf(8), rdate(8)

STANDARDS
     David L. Mills, Network Time Protocol (Version 3): Specification, Implemen-
     tation and Analysis, RFC 1305, March 1992.

     David  L.	Mills, Jim Martin, Jack Burbank, and William Kasch, Network Time
     Protocol Version 4: Protocol and Algorithms Specification, RFC  5905,  June
     2010.

HISTORY
     The ntpd program first appeared in OpenBSD 3.6.

OpenBSD 7.9			  March 2, 2023 			 NTPD(8)

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